Monday, February 16, 2015

Pacific Challenge: 30 man Pampas XV Squad named

The Unión de Argentina Rugby (UAR) has announced a thirty-man squad for the upcoming World Rugby Pacific Challenge. All players included in the squad are possibilities of playing for Argentina at Rugby World Cup 2015. The group of players features a combination of established international players heavily utilized by Daniel Hourcade in 2014 and wider roster options. The team will debut in the World Rugby competition in Fiji against Fiji A on March 10. Prior to that the Pampas XV are to face Super Rugby sides the Waratahs and Blues in Sudney and Auckland. The team will fly to Sydney this coming Wednesday.

The Pampas XV coaching staff Raúl Pérez and Martín Gaitan have gone for continuity in their squad for the 2015 Pacific Challenge. Many players are returning from the 2014 Pacific Cup in which the Argentine side won without losing a match in Australia.

Contracted Super Rugby players Matías Alemanno, Tomás Cubelli, Jerónimo De la Fuente, Santiago González Iglesias, Facundo Isa, Martín Landajo, Tomás Lezana, Pablo Matera, Manuel Montero, Guido Petti, Lucas Noguera Paz and Javier Ortega Desio have all been named in the squad. All of these players are to play for Argentina's franchise in the 2016 and 2017 seasons while Bruno Postiglioni is under contract for two years.

Others contracted for the duration of 2015 have also been included. The trio of Santiago Iglesias Valdez, Julián Montoya and Matías Díaz are all pushing for places in Argentina's World Cup squad and the Pacific Challenge offers each of them a unique opportunity. There are also a number of Super Rugby players not included in the squad. The likes of Rodrigo Báez and Matías Orlando have penned contracts with the UAR but remain sidelined after suffering serious injuries in 2014.

The make-up of the squad is similar to that of a World Cup due to there being a seventeen-thirteens plit with forwards outnumbering backs. There has only been one specialist fly half named in the form of Santiago González Iglesias. Set to provide cover, and likely also start some matches, is Javier Rojas who has experience in the position for Los Jaguares.